Hobart-Sponsored Webinar Discusses LEED for Retail and Developing Sustainable Kitchens

CHICAGO, Illinois – July 31, 2008 – A recent study by the Natural Marketing Institute shows consumer actions to protect the environment are not only increasing but are here to stay. With the growing number of consumers focused on living sustainably, it’s increasingly important for foodservice and food retail operations to develop and maintain sustainable buildings and kitchens.

To provide guidance for ways to develop a sustainable kitchen, Hobart sponsored a Webinar with hosts Justin Doak, manager of the retail sector for the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC); David Zabrowski, senior engineer and project manager of PG&E Food Service Technology Center; and Kimberly Greenwood, LEED-Accredited Professional, marketing manager for food retail for Hobart, to discuss the path to developing a sustainable kitchen.

“As consumers start to increasingly align their purchasing decisions with their sustainable preferences, those in the foodservice and food retail industry must adjust their practices, and the kitchen is a great place to start because of the amount of energy used,” said Doak.

Sustainability and LEED
The USGBC developed the LEED® certification system to identify sustainable buildings. Advantages to developing a sustainable building include a decrease in operating costs, an increase in building values, improvement in return on investment and an increase in occupancy rates and rental values. Green buildings also decrease energy use, carbon emissions, water use and solid waste.

The new LEED for Retail category focuses on retail spaces, recognizing the unique nature of food retail operations and their related foodservice programs. “The LEED for Retail certification system provides a benchmark for sustainability for foodservice and food retail operators to build and develop green buildings,” Doak said.

Zabrowski explained that a building’s kitchen uses five times more energy per square foot than the rest of the building combined. He said, “Not only is designing a sustainable kitchen an environmentally friendly thing to do, but it is also a smart business decision.”

There are a number of points earned toward LEED certification that are available through the sustainable design of the kitchen, such as utilizing ENERGY STAR® eligible equipment and appliances. A guide for specifying energy-efficient appliances is available at www.energystar.gov/sfs.

Kitchen Best Practices
Greenwood explained that there are many practices in a commercial kitchen that can help achieve the goal of developing a sustainable kitchen as well as contribute to obtaining LEED certification points.

“Foodservice and food retail operations are seeing value from efforts that increase energy efficiency, reduce water consumption, reduce waste and ensure proper cleaning and maintenance procedures,” Greenwood said.

Greenwood highlighted several best-practice examples, including:

• The Union Oyster House incorporated a flight-type warewasher into their kitchen that enabled them to receive a $20,000 energy rebate from KeySpan Energy, the largest natural gas provider distributer in the Northeast. The restaurant cut its total energy consumption by 10 percent and reduced its water and sewage costs by more than $7,800 a year. The Union Oyster House also reduced its yearly natural gas usage by about 5,080 therms.
• A large food retailer that incorporated a door-type warewasher into their bakeries, meat and seafood departments, delis and centralized locations saved up to $5,674 a year on labor and energy costs and as much as 395,280 gallons of water per year.
• Dickinson College recently installed a pulper, trimming the amount of their waste by an additional 50 percent, which translate into fewer trips to the student-run farm, further reducing fuel usage and costs. They are now able to compost or recycle nearly 75 percent of all waste.
• The Nalu Aloha Grill reduced costs and labor associated with quarterly duct and daily metal baffle cleanings by incorporating a wool air-filtration system, saving more than $2,400 in cleaning, labor and water costs annually as well as saving more than $1,200 due to fewer duct cleanings.

To learn more about designing a sustainable kitchen and to share best practices for applying LEED or sustainable standards to operations, the Hobart Center for Foodservice Sustainability is an excellent resource at www.hcfsforum.com. Additionally, to view this Webinar in its entirety, please visit www.food-management.com.

Food Service Technology Center
The Food Service Technology Center (FSTC) is the industry leader in commercial kitchen energy efficiency and appliance performance testing. The FSTC, operated by Fisher-Nickel Inc., has developed more than 30 standard test methods for evaluating commercial kitchen appliance performance. In addition to being a clearinghouse of information on equipment performance, the FSTC also has expertise in commercial kitchen ventilation and building energy efficiency, including lighting, glazing and HVAC.

United States Green Building Council
The USGBC is a nonprofit organization committed to expanding sustainable building practices. The USGBC is comprised of more than 15,000 organizations from across the building industry that are working to advance structures that are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work. Members include building owners and end-users, real estate developers, facility managers, architects, designers, engineers, general contractors, subcontractors, product and building system manufacturers, government agencies and nonprofits.

About Hobart
Hobart is the world leader in commercial food equipment and service for the foodservice and food retail industries. Hobart manufactures products for warewashing and waste handling; food preparation; baking; cooking; weighing, wrapping and labeling systems; and Traulsen refrigeration. Hobart equipment is supported by a national network of nearly 1,700 factory-trained service technicians and 200 locations across the United States. To learn more about Hobart, visit www.hobartcorp.com.

Media Contact

Tammy Monroe
HSR Business to Business
(513) 346-3436
hobart@hsr.com